I Watch Films: The Mephisto Waltz

 

The Mephisto Waltz

Myles (Alan Alda) is a music journalist, invited by Duncan Ely (Curd Jürgens), possibly the world’s greatest pianist, to interview him. According to the acerbic Ely he’s not terrible at his job. Seeing his hands he learns that Myles trained as a concert pianist but it never paid the bills. He and his daughter Roxanne (Barbara Perkins) befriend Myles and his wife Paula (Jacqueline Bisset).

Ely encourages Myles to begin playing again, tutoring him. Paula is unhappy, there’s an off-putting hedonistic New Year party with occult elements, and though Ely and Roxanne bring their rich friends to Paula’s boutique to help out, it’s off-putting and patronising.

Ely dies, and using an occult ritual he transfers into Myles body. Paula finds his change in personality invigorating, and his success as a pianist even more so. But then he has to spend more time on the road and she suspects him of having an affair with Roxanne.

She has a dream about a bargain to kill their daughter, and discovers some blue ink on her. Following which the daughter dies. Suspecting Roxanne she investigates further, leading to more deaths and a weird occult double-cross ending.

Watch This: A horror film that wants to both immerse us in the occult and keep us at arms-length at the same time, much being hinted at and more being put right on screen
Don’t Watch This: Creepy music-obsessive incestuous body-stealers are not for you